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Inspector French #16
Found Floating
Old William was losing touch and a younger man was needed to take over the family business. Jim was the obvious choice but William had other ideas. When Mant was brought in to run the firm, from the forgotten side of the family in Australia, murder was the result.
- GenresMystery
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1937
About the author
Freeman Wills Crofts
153 books89 followersBorn in Dublin of English stock, Freeman Wills Crofts was educated at Methodist and Campbell Colleges in Belfast and at age 17 he became a civil engineering pupil, apprenticed to his uncle, Berkeley D Wise who was the chief engineer of the Belfast and Northern Counties Railway (BNCR).
In 1899 he became a fully fledged railway engineer before becoming a district engineer and then chief assistant engineer for the BNCR.
He married in 1912, Mary Bellas Canning, a bank manager's daughter. His writing career began when he was recovering from a serious illness and his efforts were rewarded when his first novel 'The Cask' was accepted for publication by a London publishing house. Within two decades the book had sold 100,000 copies. Thereafter he continued to write in his spare time and produced a book a year through to 1929 when he was obliged to stop working through poor health.
When he and his wife moved to Guildford, England, he took up writing full time and not surprisingly many of his plots revolved around travel and transport, particularly transport timetables and many of them had a Guildford setting.
In retirement from engineering, as well as writing, he also pursued his other interests, music, in which he was an organist and conductor, gardening, carpentry and travel.
He wrote a mystery novel almost every year until his death and in addition he produced about 50 short stories, 30 radio plays for the BBC, a number of true crime works, a play, 'Sudden Death', a juvenile mystery, 'Young Robin Brand, Detective', and a religious work, 'The Four Gospels in One Story'.
His best known character is Inspector Joseph French, who featured in 30 detective novels between 1924 and 1957. And Raymond Chandler praised his plots, calling him "the soundest builder of them all".
Gerry Wolstenholme
May 2010
In 1899 he became a fully fledged railway engineer before becoming a district engineer and then chief assistant engineer for the BNCR.
He married in 1912, Mary Bellas Canning, a bank manager's daughter. His writing career began when he was recovering from a serious illness and his efforts were rewarded when his first novel 'The Cask' was accepted for publication by a London publishing house. Within two decades the book had sold 100,000 copies. Thereafter he continued to write in his spare time and produced a book a year through to 1929 when he was obliged to stop working through poor health.
When he and his wife moved to Guildford, England, he took up writing full time and not surprisingly many of his plots revolved around travel and transport, particularly transport timetables and many of them had a Guildford setting.
In retirement from engineering, as well as writing, he also pursued his other interests, music, in which he was an organist and conductor, gardening, carpentry and travel.
He wrote a mystery novel almost every year until his death and in addition he produced about 50 short stories, 30 radio plays for the BBC, a number of true crime works, a play, 'Sudden Death', a juvenile mystery, 'Young Robin Brand, Detective', and a religious work, 'The Four Gospels in One Story'.
His best known character is Inspector Joseph French, who featured in 30 detective novels between 1924 and 1957. And Raymond Chandler praised his plots, calling him "the soundest builder of them all".
Gerry Wolstenholme
May 2010
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 4, 2012
I was feeling really tired, so decided I'd return to my Freeman Wills Croft shelf. I discovered him when I found a three-book compendium in a second-hand shop. I launched into 'The Cask' and was instantly hooked, as much for the period detail (horse-drawn drays delivering in London!) as for the mystery. After that, a FWC became part of my Christmas stocking, until I'd got most of them. I read three or four in the last week, and have forgotten the names already ... but this was the last. It was narrated over the shoulder of Katherine, which I enjoyed, although the love bits were slightly cringey, until Inspector French got involved. The mystery was good - a seemingly impossible poisoning, followed by a disappearance during a cruise.
I didn't feel the 'purple prose' cruise place description was particularly well done - where FWC excels is in describing processes, particularly to do with mechanics - the working of the cruise liner was much more vivid. In 'The Loss of the Jane Vosper' you'd be seriously annoyed if your husband insisted on turning out the lights as you were reading the opening, the ship going down. (Maybe other people's husbands can sleep while you're still reading. It's the sort of thing that should be on a pre-marriage questionnaire...)
Another of his strengths is in the depiction of a painstaking investigation, step by step.
However the big plus for me, in this one, was that I understood how this murder was done! Some are so seriously complicated that you're left going 'Whaaat...?'
He lacks the psychological depth we've come to expect, but I'd recommend any of his books as a good, light read.
I didn't feel the 'purple prose' cruise place description was particularly well done - where FWC excels is in describing processes, particularly to do with mechanics - the working of the cruise liner was much more vivid. In 'The Loss of the Jane Vosper' you'd be seriously annoyed if your husband insisted on turning out the lights as you were reading the opening, the ship going down. (Maybe other people's husbands can sleep while you're still reading. It's the sort of thing that should be on a pre-marriage questionnaire...)
Another of his strengths is in the depiction of a painstaking investigation, step by step.
However the big plus for me, in this one, was that I understood how this murder was done! Some are so seriously complicated that you're left going 'Whaaat...?'
He lacks the psychological depth we've come to expect, but I'd recommend any of his books as a good, light read.
August 18, 2022
Firstly, a note about numbering. This is Book 13 in the Collins Crime Club reissues, but is really 16 in the Inspector French series. For completists or those who like to read in order, the three "missing" books have been reprinted fairly recently as British Library Crime Classics.
There are a few interesting points about the structure of this one.
It has been printed with four sets of "hints" by retired Superintendent Walter Hambrook which originally accompanied the novel's newspaper serialisation. I chose not to read these as they occurred but did so afterwards. They are quite illuminating, but probably will not spoil readers' enjoyment if read as they appear.
It also has a two-part plot. The first concerns the poisoning of six members of the Carrington family at a dinner party, the second, the death of one of them while they are all on a recuperative Mediterranean cruise.
I liked the poisoning section rather a lot, but confess that the cruise part, with its mind-numbing chapter on the ship's engines and its "guide-booky" description of the tourist highlights as well as an over-elaborate murder method, was less to my taste. While I had my suspicions about the murderer, the motive had me a bit stumped.
There were too many late revelations and the ending is unexciting and weak. FWC missed an opportunity in not sending Inspector Kirby, who headed the first investigation, on the cruise with French.
There are some compensations. The romance between Katherine Shirley and the wonderfully-named Dr Runciman Jellicoe is nicely-done, and some of the characters are better-fleshed-out than usual.
Very readable, apart fom Chapter 10, but not Crofts at his best.
3.5 stars.
There are a few interesting points about the structure of this one.
It has been printed with four sets of "hints" by retired Superintendent Walter Hambrook which originally accompanied the novel's newspaper serialisation. I chose not to read these as they occurred but did so afterwards. They are quite illuminating, but probably will not spoil readers' enjoyment if read as they appear.
It also has a two-part plot. The first concerns the poisoning of six members of the Carrington family at a dinner party, the second, the death of one of them while they are all on a recuperative Mediterranean cruise.
I liked the poisoning section rather a lot, but confess that the cruise part, with its mind-numbing chapter on the ship's engines and its "guide-booky" description of the tourist highlights as well as an over-elaborate murder method, was less to my taste. While I had my suspicions about the murderer, the motive had me a bit stumped.
There were too many late revelations and the ending is unexciting and weak. FWC missed an opportunity in not sending Inspector Kirby, who headed the first investigation, on the cruise with French.
There are some compensations. The romance between Katherine Shirley and the wonderfully-named Dr Runciman Jellicoe is nicely-done, and some of the characters are better-fleshed-out than usual.
Very readable, apart fom Chapter 10, but not Crofts at his best.
3.5 stars.
May 4, 2026
If at first you don't succeed, keep trying.
Although if you're trying to murder someone, you might need to rethink that advice. This book concerns the Carrington family. Grandpa was a successful business owner with two sons and two daughters. He sent his sons to Australia to oversee a project and George stayed. William came home and his father left him the business and one-half of his money.
He left George one-quarter of the estate, although there was little contact between the English Carringtons and the OZ branch. As was the custom at the time, the daughters weren't treated equally. Cousins Katherine Shirley, Jim Musgrave, and his sister Eva Dugdale were the children of the Carrington daughters and they split the remaining one-quarter of the money between them.
Their inheritance provides only a small income, but Jim has a job in the business and confidently expects to inherit it from his bachelor Uncle William. Eva's husband also works for the family business, while Katherine acts as her uncle's housekeeper and receives a salary. So, in spite of the inequalities of the will, William sees that all the family is provided for.
Then comes a shocker. William's health deteriorates and he plans to retire. He announces that he plans to leave the business to Mant Carrington, George's son. He gives the excuse that his nephew Jim isn't a good businessman, while Mant is tough enough to keep the business running. No one is happy (especially Jim) but what can they do?
The family gathers for Uncle William's annual birthday dinner. After the meal is finished and the toast given, everyone becomes ill. The local police investigate. Chemical analysis shows all the family had arsenic in their drinks, but Mant had another poison as well. He's the sickest and barely escapes death.
Both poisons were in the house. The police are suspicious of Jim, but with no evidence. Meanwhile, Uncle William invites all the family to be be his guests on an ocean cruise to recover their good health. Partway through the cruise, Mant disappears. Looks like someone is determined to get rid of the Aussie cousin. That's when Scotland Yard is called in and Chief Inspector French appears.
This one was published in four segments in the "Daily Mail" and a retired Scotland Yard detective comments at the end of each segment. He gives his opinions of how the police (both local and Scotland Yard) are handling the investigation.
I'm not impressed with ex-Superintendent Hambrook's comments. Sometimes he seems to have lost the plot. He refers to "Katherine Carrington" whose correct name was Katherine Shirley. He decides that Eva Dugdale (Katherine's cousin) is suspicious on the grounds that she's a beauty, but married a homely man with no money. From this, he concludes she must be having affairs and the attempted murder was driven by jealously.
He thinks she might be in love with both Mant and Jim, thus creating a love triangle. Jim is her brother. Of course, incest does occur, but I doubt he was thinking of incest. I suspect he just got the characters confused.
Mant's arrival has caused marital problems, but it's uncertain if Eva is having an affair with him or if he's trying to force her to do so. French surprisingly buys into this "motive" and concocts a bizarre scenario in which Mant could have been killed and his body dropped overboard.
I thought the whole theory was absurd. Why shouldn't Eva marry an ugly man if she wanted to? Maybe she did it for the same reason some pretty girls have homely best friends - they like the contrast, which shows up their own good looks. And if Mant was being a problem, would the Dugdales have gone to such extremes to get rid of him?
I won't give away the end, but it relies on a phenomenon most elderly people are familiar with. It's the tendency to stereotype seniors that makes people look at my white hair and decide (with no other evidence) that I'm a "sweet little old lady." Don't you believe it! I'm also surprised neither the local police nor French found anything suspicious about one of the characters. To me, he was as phony as a two-dollar bill.
Crofts obviously took cruises and (typical engineer) was fascinated with the machinery of the large ship. Skip Chapter Ten, unless you want to know how a large ship is operated. I did enjoy French's friendship with Captain Goode and the experienced seaman's help in determining why the body was "found floating" where it was and how the strange cuts occurred.
Typically, Crofts notes the shabby deal that gives sea captains so much responsibility while affording them no job security. He expressed the same sentiments in my favorite - "The Loss of the Jane Vosper." Crofts was a defender of the underdog and disliked seeing any group misused.
There's a romance between Katherine and the new town doctor. Both are slow to commit themselves, being older and more cautious than young lovers. Still, I had to laugh at Crofts' description of Doctor Jellicoe's delight when he realizes Katherine returns his love. "When he left the house, elderly man of almost forty as he was, his heart was singing." Ideas of "elderly" have changed since then.
I was puzzled at the doctor's first name, which is Runciman. I've never seen that as a first or last name. I think it came from a titled diplomat who was in the news at the time. In the late 193o's, England's Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was doing what he could to prevent WWII, mostly by telling Hitler and Mussolina that no one would play with them if they weren't nice. Lord Runciman was sent on a mission to try to peacefully settle a dispute between two countries. So it IS a real name.
It's not Crofts' best, but there are some good parts. The ending is excellent. Some "fair play" proponents might say the reader isn't given all the information, but Crofts certainly hinted at it. Not the most realistic of Crofts' mysteries, but it's worth reading. If only to feel superior to the real and fictional Scotland Yard detectives!
Although if you're trying to murder someone, you might need to rethink that advice. This book concerns the Carrington family. Grandpa was a successful business owner with two sons and two daughters. He sent his sons to Australia to oversee a project and George stayed. William came home and his father left him the business and one-half of his money.
He left George one-quarter of the estate, although there was little contact between the English Carringtons and the OZ branch. As was the custom at the time, the daughters weren't treated equally. Cousins Katherine Shirley, Jim Musgrave, and his sister Eva Dugdale were the children of the Carrington daughters and they split the remaining one-quarter of the money between them.
Their inheritance provides only a small income, but Jim has a job in the business and confidently expects to inherit it from his bachelor Uncle William. Eva's husband also works for the family business, while Katherine acts as her uncle's housekeeper and receives a salary. So, in spite of the inequalities of the will, William sees that all the family is provided for.
Then comes a shocker. William's health deteriorates and he plans to retire. He announces that he plans to leave the business to Mant Carrington, George's son. He gives the excuse that his nephew Jim isn't a good businessman, while Mant is tough enough to keep the business running. No one is happy (especially Jim) but what can they do?
The family gathers for Uncle William's annual birthday dinner. After the meal is finished and the toast given, everyone becomes ill. The local police investigate. Chemical analysis shows all the family had arsenic in their drinks, but Mant had another poison as well. He's the sickest and barely escapes death.
Both poisons were in the house. The police are suspicious of Jim, but with no evidence. Meanwhile, Uncle William invites all the family to be be his guests on an ocean cruise to recover their good health. Partway through the cruise, Mant disappears. Looks like someone is determined to get rid of the Aussie cousin. That's when Scotland Yard is called in and Chief Inspector French appears.
This one was published in four segments in the "Daily Mail" and a retired Scotland Yard detective comments at the end of each segment. He gives his opinions of how the police (both local and Scotland Yard) are handling the investigation.
I'm not impressed with ex-Superintendent Hambrook's comments. Sometimes he seems to have lost the plot. He refers to "Katherine Carrington" whose correct name was Katherine Shirley. He decides that Eva Dugdale (Katherine's cousin) is suspicious on the grounds that she's a beauty, but married a homely man with no money. From this, he concludes she must be having affairs and the attempted murder was driven by jealously.
He thinks she might be in love with both Mant and Jim, thus creating a love triangle. Jim is her brother. Of course, incest does occur, but I doubt he was thinking of incest. I suspect he just got the characters confused.
Mant's arrival has caused marital problems, but it's uncertain if Eva is having an affair with him or if he's trying to force her to do so. French surprisingly buys into this "motive" and concocts a bizarre scenario in which Mant could have been killed and his body dropped overboard.
I thought the whole theory was absurd. Why shouldn't Eva marry an ugly man if she wanted to? Maybe she did it for the same reason some pretty girls have homely best friends - they like the contrast, which shows up their own good looks. And if Mant was being a problem, would the Dugdales have gone to such extremes to get rid of him?
I won't give away the end, but it relies on a phenomenon most elderly people are familiar with. It's the tendency to stereotype seniors that makes people look at my white hair and decide (with no other evidence) that I'm a "sweet little old lady." Don't you believe it! I'm also surprised neither the local police nor French found anything suspicious about one of the characters. To me, he was as phony as a two-dollar bill.
Crofts obviously took cruises and (typical engineer) was fascinated with the machinery of the large ship. Skip Chapter Ten, unless you want to know how a large ship is operated. I did enjoy French's friendship with Captain Goode and the experienced seaman's help in determining why the body was "found floating" where it was and how the strange cuts occurred.
Typically, Crofts notes the shabby deal that gives sea captains so much responsibility while affording them no job security. He expressed the same sentiments in my favorite - "The Loss of the Jane Vosper." Crofts was a defender of the underdog and disliked seeing any group misused.
There's a romance between Katherine and the new town doctor. Both are slow to commit themselves, being older and more cautious than young lovers. Still, I had to laugh at Crofts' description of Doctor Jellicoe's delight when he realizes Katherine returns his love. "When he left the house, elderly man of almost forty as he was, his heart was singing." Ideas of "elderly" have changed since then.
I was puzzled at the doctor's first name, which is Runciman. I've never seen that as a first or last name. I think it came from a titled diplomat who was in the news at the time. In the late 193o's, England's Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was doing what he could to prevent WWII, mostly by telling Hitler and Mussolina that no one would play with them if they weren't nice. Lord Runciman was sent on a mission to try to peacefully settle a dispute between two countries. So it IS a real name.
It's not Crofts' best, but there are some good parts. The ending is excellent. Some "fair play" proponents might say the reader isn't given all the information, but Crofts certainly hinted at it. Not the most realistic of Crofts' mysteries, but it's worth reading. If only to feel superior to the real and fictional Scotland Yard detectives!
April 8, 2025
I love the Inspector French cases, but this one defies all credibility. The killer's method is so cumbersome that it's impossible for him to succeed.
December 20, 2022
Decent French . A pleasurable read but does not have as much meat of Mystery as others . However, the description of far of places in far off times was very interesting as was the chapter on running a big ship out of a tricky harbour . I had guessed the motive right but did not really see through the method . While the origin of the motive could not have been guessed , there were very clever misdirections too.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews